I think these films receive a criminally low amount of attention given their quality. It's rare that a trilogy of films increase in quality as they go on. You could argue that for LOTR, but I can't think of any others. The first of these films is the lightest of the three, and features all the staples of the next two, with seedy, realistic characters, lots of location shooting and lots of drugs. I love the way the trilogy progresses downward almost into hell, just showing how bad the underworld goes, as in the first two films there is violence, but it's shown at times in a comic relief way that takes away from the reality of the situation. Kim Bodnia is awesome in the lead role of the first pusher, with Mads Mikkelsen delivering a solid supporting role in the first and then an even better lead role in the second of the trilogy.
The third movie, though, is my personal favorite, and the one I've watched the most of the three. Of the three films it's certainly the one that reaches hell, so to speak, and unlike the other two does not try to make light of any of the violence, drugs or otherwise terrifying behavior shown throughout. Fantastic multi-lingual leading performance by Croatian Zlatko Buric, a drug lord who is showcased to some extent in all three films (the only actor to be in all three), and whose role here is many times larger than in other films. Based on the other two films, it's amazing that anyone could sympathize with such a ruthless character, but somehow he pulled it off, everyone who I've shown this film to has ended up liking him or rooting for him to at least a limited extent by the end of the film. There's very little redeeming about him, either, or any of these characters, but as you watch and more or less "get to know them", you begin to like them. I guess it's a testimony to Nicholas Winding Refn's direction, which is progressively better (like the trilogy) as the films go on.
Also, I find it incredibly grating when I read about how these films are more or less a result or bi-product of Pulp Fiction, when they are a totally different animal. Pulp Fiction looks like loony tunes compared to Pusher 3.
Obviously very highly recommended to anyone.
The third movie, though, is my personal favorite, and the one I've watched the most of the three. Of the three films it's certainly the one that reaches hell, so to speak, and unlike the other two does not try to make light of any of the violence, drugs or otherwise terrifying behavior shown throughout. Fantastic multi-lingual leading performance by Croatian Zlatko Buric, a drug lord who is showcased to some extent in all three films (the only actor to be in all three), and whose role here is many times larger than in other films. Based on the other two films, it's amazing that anyone could sympathize with such a ruthless character, but somehow he pulled it off, everyone who I've shown this film to has ended up liking him or rooting for him to at least a limited extent by the end of the film. There's very little redeeming about him, either, or any of these characters, but as you watch and more or less "get to know them", you begin to like them. I guess it's a testimony to Nicholas Winding Refn's direction, which is progressively better (like the trilogy) as the films go on.
Also, I find it incredibly grating when I read about how these films are more or less a result or bi-product of Pulp Fiction, when they are a totally different animal. Pulp Fiction looks like loony tunes compared to Pusher 3.
Obviously very highly recommended to anyone.
